EUGENE, Ore. -- (Sept. 5, 2012) -- The University of Oregon Department of Public Safety has hired Pete Deshpande as its new police captain. Deshpande has served at the Eugene Police Department since 1990, most recently as an acting captain and for five years as a lieutenant.
He is a University of Oregon graduate twice over, with a bachelor's degree in psychology (1983) and a master of business administration in management (1986).
"The university is incredibly fortunate to get someone of Captain Deshpande's experience," UODPS Interim Police Chief Carolyn McDermed said. "Campus policing, especially in this community and on this campus, takes a special temperament, understanding and energy. Pete knows and loves this community, obviously has an excellent relationship with our local law enforcement partners, and will be able to be effective right away."
Deshpande will lead the Safe Campus Team, develop a comprehensive community safety program, coordinate problem-solving police initiatives, help manage patrol operations and help lead the department's policing transition. He becomes the department's sixth certified police officer, with another five commissioned police officers in various stages of certification.
Not only is he a two-time graduate of the UO, but Desphande has had two children attend the school, his mother is a UO graduate and his father is a professor emeritus in the physics department, Nilendra Deshpande. He and his wife were even married on campus – at the Collier House.
"Interacting with students, like my own kids and their friends, gives me a fresh, positive perspective," Deshpande said of his career change. "So much of police work can be about seemingly unsolvable problems that it's energizing to help create a positive environment for students who are going to go on and do great things."
UODPS is a state-certified police agency, serving the University of Oregon campus, and is in a multi-year transition to provide full police department services. By direction of the State Board of Higher Education, UODPS police officers do not carry firearms, though that issue will be discussed on campus during the coming school year and the UO administration will make a recommendation on the topic to the state board next spring. The department works in partnership with the Eugene Police Department for arrests, the transportation of suspects, armed responses and certain investigations.
Information about the department is available online (police.uoregon.edu), along with links to the department's Facebook and Twitter accounts.
About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is among the 108 institutions chosen from 4,633 U.S. universities for top-tier designation of "Very High Research Activity" in the 2010 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The UO also is one of two Pacific Northwest members of the Association of American Universities.
MEDIA CONTACT: Kelly McIver, UODPS public information officer, at 541-346-8335, or kmciver@uoregon.edu.
Note: The University of Oregon is equipped with an on-campus television studio with satellite uplink capacity, and a radio studio with an ISDN phone line for broadcast-quality radio interviews.